Wadi Yabis

Recently we took a hike through Wadi Yabis, a valley--wadi means valley in Arabic--that starts high in the mountains of the north and winds its way down to the Jordan Valley, the lowest point on Earth. Located in an area said to have been the homeland of the biblical Prophet Elijah, the valley features a rare perennial spring that we enjoyed walking through, thousand year old olive trees and the elusive Black Iris--Jordan's national flower--which I finally saw in person for the first time. Because it is spring now, the surrounding hillsides were also covered in a thick green that will disappear by the beginning of the summer.